Another "Made in China" epidemic is on fire How far is the bicycle industry from "Spring"

　　Our reporter Jin Feng

　　To improve the competitiveness and profitability of China's bicycle industry, it is necessary to work in line with international standards, and at the same time deeply cultivate vertical areas, such as sports bicycles, to enhance the brand image.

　　Nowadays, a "buying wave" is being staged in many countries in Europe and the United States. It is our most familiar means of transportation-bicycles. According to data released by the Russian online retailer "Wildberry", bicycle sales in Russia in May reached 60 times the same period last year; data from a cross-border e-commerce platform in Europe showed that bicycle sales in the Spanish market increased in May compared to the same period last year. More than 22 times, Italy and the United Kingdom have also increased by about 4 times; while the sales of commuting and fitness bicycles in the United States have increased by 66% compared with the same period last year, and the sales of leisure bicycles have increased by 121%...

　　Following masks, toilet paper, and ventilators, bicycles have become the products pursued by European and American citizens or corporate organizations. So, what impact will this trend have on "Made in China" bicycles?

Bicycle manufacturing country leads "new fashion"

　　"The impact of the "new fashion" of buying bicycles in many countries is not small." Wang Zhenmeng, a senior bicycle industry researcher of the China Bicycle Association, told reporters at Science and Technology Daily that since April, overseas orders for a domestic bicycle brand have increased by 30% from the previous month. Above, production capacity is tight. In the past, the order could be shipped within 3 days, and now it has to wait at least a week. In order to cope with the surge in orders, the factory worked overtime 24 hours, but the order was still scheduled to 1 month later.

　　What is the charm of Chinese bicycles that can be sold in the global market? In Wang Zhenmeng's view, the following three points are enough to sum up-sufficient output, high cost performance, and timely delivery.

　　"Under the New Coronary Pneumonia epidemic, people in Europe and the United States have greatly increased the demand for bicycles, but the domestic bicycle manufacturers have been unable to keep up with the supply of bicycles. As domestic supply is in short supply, they have begun to place orders overseas, known as the'Bike Kingdom' 'China has become their main import target." Wang Zhenmeng said. The data shows that my country's annual bicycle production accounts for about 50% of the world's annual sales, which has a huge stock advantage.

　　In addition, according to Wang Zhenmeng, China has a complete industrial chain for the bicycle and electric vehicle industry from parts to assembled vehicles. Because of low labor cost and mature production technology, the cost-effective advantage is obvious, and it has always been favored by foreign consumers.

　　Affected by the epidemic, overseas offline stores closed and closed, many foreign consumers choose to shop online through cross-border e-commerce. This not only drove the sharp increase in the online transaction volume of bicycles, but also reduced the cost of many small and medium-sized domestic manufacturers going abroad. Since most cross-border e-commerce companies have overseas warehouses, bicycles can be delivered to overseas consumers in about three days.

　　"Since the outbreak of the epidemic, there have been batches of batches of anti-epidemic materials produced in China flying all over the world, and the export volume has reached more than 3 billion yuan per day. Although bicycles are not direct anti-epidemic materials, global epidemic prevention and control have become normal In the context, riding is a more convenient and healthy way to travel." Wang Zhenmeng said.

　　It is true that the rapid growth of China's bicycle exports is not only due to the sharp increase in global bicycle market demand in recent years, but also because of the strong R&D and production capabilities of Chinese bicycle companies, which can quickly adapt to market changes. Wang Zhenmeng said: "For example, Tianjin Jinlun Bicycle Group has developed 14 series of mountain bikes, health care bikes, shock absorbers, and sports bikes, and nearly 1,000 varieties, which have received nearly 100 products from Japan, South Korea, the United States, and the European Union. National and regional consumers love it."

The bicycle industry as a whole is still in transition

　　The surge in demand for bicycles in Europe and the United States can make domestic bicycle manufacturers have a good life? Wang Zhenmeng believes that the answer does not seem optimistic.

　　Taking Shanghai Phoenix as an example, the group once brought a large number of orders for sharing bicycles, setting a peak in revenue, and soon fell into a trough. In 2019, the company began to transform, and through the remodeling of its brand image, technological innovation, the introduction of modular models, and the strengthening of online sales channel construction, it turned losses into profits that year, but the first quarter of this year caused a significant decline in performance due to the epidemic; it is also reported that the hand Zhonglu shares, the "permanent bicycle" signboard, have lost money for 12 years.

　　The encounter between the two old automakers is also a microcosm of China's bicycle industry. Affected by factors such as saturated demand and the popularity of shared bicycles, the growth of my country's bicycle industry has entered a bottleneck period. In 2019, domestic bicycle sales totaled 12.49 million, down 23% year-on-year.

　　The relevant person in charge of CITIC Securities Manufacturing Industry said that my country is currently the world's largest bicycle exporter, but the export volume and bicycle prices have also reached the platform period.

　　According to the "Analysis Report on the Economic Operation of the Chinese Bicycle Industry in 2019" released by the China Bicycle Association, the number, amount and average price of China's bicycle exports have decreased year-on-year. In 2019, bicycle exports reached 52.51 million, down 11.4% year-on-year; the export value was US$2.85 billion, down 12.4% year-on-year; the average export unit price was US$54.2, down 1.2% year-on-year.

　　Regarding the future of my country's bicycle industry, Wang Zhenmeng believes that the task of "stabilizing exports" is still arduous. At the same time, domestic bicycles are hardly high-end in the industrial chain. Compared with the selling price of thousands of dollars of foreign brands Trek and Specialized, the average selling price of domestic bicycles is less than 1,000 yuan.

　　"Bicycles are an important means of transportation, with annual global sales of 230 million vehicles and a market space of 80 billion US dollars. At present, traditional two-wheeled vehicles have entered the stock market. However, with the upgrade of consumption, electric treadmills with good riding experience have been in the European market in recent years. The growth hub is still expected to reach 20%." Wang Zhenmeng said.

　　Whether the successful transformation can seize the high-end market is regarded as a challenge by industry experts. my country's bicycle industry has previously experienced the temptation to share bicycles and blindly expanded production capacity. However, due to lack of core competitiveness, manufacturers also face some difficulties. "To improve the competitiveness and profitability of the Chinese bicycle industry, it is necessary to strive to be in line with international standards, while deeply cultivating vertical areas, such as sports bicycles, to enhance the brand image and reputation." Wang Zhenmeng said.

Related Links

Bicycle concept stocks have experienced ups and downs

　　According to relevant media reports, the hot sales in the European and American markets have been transmitted to the domestic market, and the financial industry has launched a "bicycle concept stock" earlier. As of June 5th, Shanghai Phoenix had three consecutive daily limits, and Xinlong Health had two consecutive daily limits. However, after the consecutively rising Zhonglu shares received the daily limit on June 4, the stock price had a callback on the 5th, a decline of 2.8%.

　　The three bicycle companies have different proportions of overseas sales. Xinlong Health's 2019 annual report shows that the company's bicycle parts and accessories in 2019 achieved revenue of 1.167 billion yuan, accounting for 59.35% of the company's total revenue. The company's revenue accounts for more than 60% of overseas sales.

　　The announcement of the abnormal fluctuation of stock transactions disclosed by Zhonglu shares on June 1st shows that the company's export revenue in 2019 was 28.235 million yuan, accounting for 4.83% of the company's annual operating income; and the abnormal fluctuation of stock transactions disclosed by Shanghai Phoenix on the evening of June 4th The announcement shows that in 2019 and the first quarter of 2020, bicycle exports accounted for 17% to 18% of total bicycle sales.

　　In the face of rising stock prices, listed companies have to give risk warnings. Shanghai Phoenix said on June 4 that the company's exports to the US and EU countries accounted for less than 1%.

　　For the recent sharp rise and fall of bicycle concept stocks, Pangu think tank senior researcher Jiang Han analyzed that the recent panic buying is more of a temporary demand. Unless the changes in people's travel structure bring continuous demand, for investors , Should not blindly chase hot spots.